Samantha Ponder

“I grew up in a family where we had dessert for breakfast.”

“There is no such thing as replacing Chris Berman, but the chance to build on his incredible legacy while simultaneously taking new risks to serve NFL fans is the opportunity of a lifetime.”

“I got some big breaks early on, and the attitude around it was always 'You're just lucky to be here.' No one came out and said that, but that was the clear message. And I felt that way.”

“How can you accept an apology from someone if they don't say what they did?”

“I got into sports broadcasting because I loved sports, not because I loved TV.”

“I'm of the opinion that fans are often best served by broadcasters who have the best relationships with the people they are talking about.”

“I didn't have cable growing up. I never saw ESPN or GameDay.”

“The best thing about college football, to me: You can tell when you're on campus.”

“I've been asked a lot about filling Chris Berman's role - to be honest, I don't even allow myself to see it that way. He is a total legend and created so much of what ESPN is known for and specifically our NFL coverage. That's an impossible task.”

“I know many women in this industry have to deal with men who are belittling, unsupportive or even inappropriate.”

“Whenever someone says something to me like 'Oh, another blonde at ESPN,' I would like to crunch the numbers. First, I think we have more brunettes than blondes. And second, there are only three normal hair colors. You're either a redhead, brunette, or blonde. It's really not that complicated.”

“I thought I wanted to be on ESPN, but I didn't know what the heck it was. I knew it was sports television, but we didn't have it. We didn't really watch TV growing up.”

“Like any woman in the public eye, I get a considerable number of sexist/misogynistic tweets from people.”

“The funny thing that still cracks me up is when you get a grown man coming up to you shaking asking for a picture. I'm like 'Dude, you know I'm a scrub, right?'”